Antigone :: essays research papers

Antigone, a play written by Sophocles, became a classic due to its timeless subject matter. In this play, the Greek dramatist reflected mainly on civil disobedience. Antigone believes in individual rights over state rights. Creon, however, strongly believes in putting state over religion. The play not only revolves on these two political and religious issues, but it also deals with the battle of the sexes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The play is about a strong-willed woman, Antigone, defying the laws of a proud king, Creon. Antigone is torn between her devotion to the gods, her brother Polynices, and her loyalty to the king. Creon, ruler of Thebes, issued the order to leave the traitor Polynices’ body unburied.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   He must be left unburied, his corpse carrion for the birds and dogs to tear, an obscenity for the citizens to behold! (229-31) Antigone was not about to simply obey Creon’s absurd decree. She felt that her personal responsibility was to the gods and her family rather than the king. She then asked Ismene, her sister, to assist her with the burial, but was denied any help. Ismene justified her decision by telling Antigone that they were already punished and that there was no need to make matters worse for the two of them by defying Creon’s law. Oh my sister, think- think how our own father died, hated,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  his reputation in ruins, driven on by the crimes he brought to light himself to gouge out his eyes with his own hands- then mother†¦his mother and wife, both in one,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  mutilating her life in the twisted noose-   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  and last, our two brothers dead in a single day,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  both shedding there won blood, poor suffering boys,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  battling out their common destiny hand-to-hand. (60-69) I, for one, I’ll beg the dead to forgive me— I’m forced, I have no choice—I must obey the ones who stand in power. Why rush to extremes? It’s madness, madness. (78-81) Antigone was disappointed at first, but decided that she will bury Polynices with or without Ismene’s help. You have your excuses. I am on my way, I’ll raise a mound for him, for my dear brother. (95-96) Creon was warned about a plan to bury Polynices and later found the culprit, Antigone. He issued a death sentence for her defying action. Creon informed his son, Haemon, of his fiancee’s deceit. Haemon, however, defended his beloved fiancà ©e. He told his father that the whole city was on her side, but everybody was afraid to speak out against him.

How accuracy may be ensured in techniques used Essay

M1: Explain how accuracy may be ensured in the techniques used Cynthia Nzeh Task 1 1) Discuss how your choice of equipment and how it affected the accuracy of your method. Discuss good volumetric technique. 2) Calculate the apparatus error for the method used. 3) Given the value calculated by the senior technician calculate your error and comment on this error in relation to the apparatus error of the method. In the titration, I used these available instruments to ensure my results would be as accurate as possible. Volumetric burette: This instrument was filled with the sodium hydroxide solution that would be gradually added to the vinegar solution. The burette was used instead of a measuring cylinder as it gives a finer volume reading. It has a tap which enables the user to quickly and easily stop the amount of sodium hydroxide solution that pours out. However using a piston burette instead of a volumetric burette may have increased the chances of gaining more accurate results. This is because the piston burette delivers precision bore and plunger. White tile: The tile was used to be able to observe the colour change of the solution in the conical flask better. By placing the white tile it allowed us to see the colour change more easily and quickly therefore increasing our chances of closing the burette tap on time and giving us closer and possibly more accurate results. If non clear paper was used or no paper at all, the colour change of the solution would not have been spotted as quickly therefore increasing the time taken to close the burette tap to stop sodium hydroxide being added to the vinegar solution. The increase of sodium hydroxide solution would mean that the results obtained would not be the accurate or close to the accurate value. Funnel: This piece of equipment was added to the top of the burette and it was used to channel the sodium hydroxide solution into the burette. The mouth of the burette was too small to pour the sodium hydroxide solution in safely so the plastic funnel was used to prevent any spillage of the solution and enabled the sodium hydroxide solution to be poured into the  burette with precision and no spillage. A disposable paper funnel would not have been an appropriate piece of equipment to use, this is because the paper funnel would have absorbed some of the correctly measured sodium hydroxide solution (liquid) and changed the total volume of the sodium hydroxide going into the burette. The funnel is then removed before the titration takes place; this is to prevent any extra droplets, of the solution remaining in the funnel, to be added to the solution as it could affect the overall volume in the burette. Conical flask: The conical flask was used to store the vinegar with drops of phenolphthalein before sodium hydroxide was added to the solution through the burette. A conical flask was the most ideal piece of equipment to use. The narrow head minimises the risk of splashes from the flask, this means that the solution remains in the flask and does not come into contact with experimenter. Using a conical flask over a beaker is more ideal. This is due to the fact that a beaker has a wide open mouth which means that solutions can splash out when poured in. Also, the shape of the instrument make it is easier to swirl the contents of the flask. Bulb pipette (and filler): This instrument was used to measure out 25.0cm3 of sodium hydroxide to be added to the conical flask. There is a line of meniscus which indicates where the volume should be, this makes the pipette produce an accurate 25.0 volume. The pipette has a narrow portion which slows down the speed at which the solution gets drawn up. This enables the volume to be more accurate as it is easier and quicker to stop the pipette drawing up more of the solution after drawing up the desired amount. A measuring cylinder may have also been used and may be more ideal than the bulb pipette. This is due to the fact that it has a measuring scale and the amount poured into the instrument is more controlled compared to the bulb pipette as this only has one line of measurement and it is tricky to get a solution to fall on the line of the meniscus. Good Volumetric Techniques To achieve a good volumetric technique, the experimenter needs to be able to correctly complete certain procedures. Before beginning an experiment, it is good to calibrate any equipment that needs calibration. This ensures that results obtain will be as accurate as possible or as near to the true value. All equipment should be inspected to ensure that there are no chips, cracks or general damage to the equipment as these could cause problems during the experiment which could affect the overall results gained. Equipment such as burettes, pipettes, flasks and beakers must be rinsed with distilled water to get rid of any impurities in the equipment. If solutions are to be poured in any piece of equipment then the equipment should also be rinsed out with the solution being used, this will maintain the pH level in the instrument. Once a solution is transferred from the pipette to the flask, touching the tip of the pipette on the side of the flask will drain any extra drops that may still remain on the tip of the pipette. When filling up the burette it is important that a funnel is used, however as the solution reaches the 0 mark it is ideal that the funnel be removed and a pipette used instead to reach the 0 mark, this is to achieve greater precision. During the experiment, it is important to swirl the flask continuously with one hand whilst the other hand opens and closes the tap of the burette, this allows the solution to mix well enough for the colour change to be observed quicker. The titrant should be added in drop by drop as it reaches the endpoint as it prevents too much of the solution in the burette to be added to the solution in the conical flask. Also, the tap should be shut properly to prevent any extra unwanted solution from pouring out. The burette and pipette must be read at eye level to gain the actual result. To ensure reliability, the experiment should be repeated until a concordance between two results is acquired. Apparatus error To calculate the apparatus error the equation is: Maximum error Measure Value 25cm3 pipette = ( ± 0.1cm3 à · 25) x 100 = 0.4 Burette = ( ± 0.15cm à · 22.75) x 100 = 0.66 Mass Balance = (0.01 à · 4.05) x 100 = 0.25 Volumetric flask = (0.1 à · 200) x 100 = 0.05 = 1.36% apparatus error Experimental error = 100 x (real answer – experiment answer) Real answer 100 x (0.056 – 0.0546) 0.056 100 x 0.0014 = 2.5% 0.056 The experimental error is greater than the apparatus error. This could have been down to a number of different factors. Too much sodium hydroxide may have been added to the solution which could have changed the volume of sodium hydroxide used. The burette could have been read wrong and not at the same eye level or from the bottom of the meniscus line. These faults may have been the cause of the experimental error or they may have added to the experimental error and this is why the experimental error is much greater than the apparatus error. Task 2 & 3 There were certain procedures done in order to ensure the results obtained would be as accurate as possible. Flame test Before beginning the experiment, the wire loop is dipped into dilute hydrochloric acid then held in a Bunsen burner flame. This is to get rid of any residue remaining of the loop. Each test tube was correctly labelled to avoid a mix up. The solutions where look at behind a white background, this was to enable the correct colour to be identified easier. Different instruments for different solution were used. Food test For this test it was important to keep the amount of food samples used equal for each food group. The food samples were placed in separate pellets to avoid cross contamination between the foods. Each test tube was correct labelled to avoid a mix up. Equal drops of indicators were added to each food sample. Sources http://nobel.scas.bcit.ca/courses/wpmu/chem0011/files/2010/06/Lab8-Introduction-to-Volumetric-Techniques-I.pdf http://chemwiki.ucdavis.edu/Analytical_Chemistry/Quantitative_Analysis/Titration http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=363038 http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_do_you_calculate_percentage_error_for_equipment http://www.chemguide.co.uk/inorganic/group1/flametests.html

Bureaucracy and Liberalisation

After independence the newly emerged Indian State was characterized by the dominant role in all the spheres of society. It was a welfare state whose objective was to secure political, social and economic justice to all the sections of Indian population. The Westminister model of parliamentary democracy with universal adult franchise was adopted. In social field, various evils in the society were sought to be eradicated by the State.Untouchability was abolished and social reforms were undertaken. In the economic sphere, the state not only regulated the market, it also emerged as the major employer providing employment opportunities to the people. India adopted the policy of mixed economy/a powerful public sector was created. For Nehru, the public sector undertakings were the temples of modern India. Their objective was to assist in the rapid economic growth and industrialisation of the country.Over the years their number and investments have grown in size and quantity. While in 1951, there were five central public sector undertakings (PSUs) with an investment of Rs 29 crores, now there are as many as 243 enterprises with a total investment of Rs 1,78,628 crores. The private sector was also to play an important role in the mixed economy. However it was highly regulated and controlled economy as far as the private sector was concerned. Rightly it was called the licence-quota permit Raj.However the collapse of socialist political and economic system in earstwhile Soviet Union and other socialist states led to the emergence of a global economy which meant introducing competitive markets, liberalising foreign trade and opening up the economy for foreign investment. According to Marina Pinto â€Å"Liberalisation is the policy of removal of restrictions, trade barriers and protectionist measures to enable the free flow of capital, technology and services. It is generally seen in the context of globalization and privatization. † In eighties liberalisation process started taking place in India economy.But the severe foreign exchange and fiscal crisis in early 1990's compelled India to take massive loan from IMF and world Bank which as critics point out, dictated India to liberalise its economy. This was done under the leadership of Dr. Manmohan Singh, the Finance Minister in P. V. Narsimha Rao Government. The New Industrial Policy of 1991, stated that â€Å"Foreign investment and technology collaboration will be welcomed to obtain higher technology, to increase exports and to expand the production base. † The Licence-quota permit Raj has been given a good-bye and the economic system has largely become competitive.Even in the public sector the nine major public sector undertakings or Navratnas—Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOC), Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Limited (IPCL), National Thermal P ower Corporation Limited (NTPC), Oil;National Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC), Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited (VSNL) have been given considerable financial and functional autonomy.The Government was also considering to include more public sector undertakings in this list. However this does not mean that the role of the State would recede and it would only concentrate on the maintenance of law and order. The state continues to be a welfare state. It will continue to ameliorate the conditions of poor and down-troddens. The economic policies are to be realistic. Jagdish Bhagwati, one of the leading economists says that the first fifty years of independence has been â€Å"half a century of foolish policies, which cost her (India) growth and hence a significant opportunity to ameliorate poverty. Now rational policies are to be drafted and implemented with due regard to monitoring of policies in stages. This also means that the generalist administ ration will either be substituted by the experts or they be given their due place in the administration. The bureaucracy will have to be responsive and transparent and infact the entire work ethos has to be changed. It also means maximum possible delegation of authority and sufficient decentralized control. Ultimately it may lead to debureaucratization of the administration.The 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment providing for local self government is designed to transfer the developmental functions to the local self government. We may be witness to gradual shrinking of the state and its administrative machinery. But this does not mean that state would recede in the background. It may be a scenario where we have a reoriented, purposive accountable and transparent administration as a friend, philosopher and guide. The essential condition for all this is poliucal will, integrity and honesy at higher levels of politics and de-criminalisation of politics.